Door support



Dec. 17, 1935. R ZER 2,24,886

DOOR SUPPORT Original Filed April 22, 1932 2 Sheets-Sheet l 9 R. a. SQHONWZER 2,24,;886

noon SUPPORT Original Filed April 22, 1932 2 Sheets-Sh eet 2 Patented Dec. 17, 1935 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE Original application April 22, 1932, Serial No. 606,941, now Patent No. 1,963,475, June 19, 1934. Divided and this application August 3, 1933,

Serial No. 683,515

8 Claims.

This invention is a door support and is a division of my co-pending application, Serial No. 606,941, filed April 22, 1932, now Patent No. 1,963,475, issued June 19, 1934.

The present door support is in the nature of an attachment involving cooperating parts to be mounted on a door and its frame respectively, and the prime object of the invention is to effect a wedging action, upon the closing of the door, between the door and its frame so as to apply pressure upon the door in the plane thereof and bind it between the opposite edges of the door frame, thereby to prevent looseness of the door within its frame and effectually prevent rattling of the door.

The attachment or door support is complete in itself and may be applied in the original assembling of a door and its frame or may be applied to a door already in use. It may be applied at the top or at the bottom edge of the door, or at the free edge thereof, and is constructed and arranged to automatically accommodate itself to any variation in the width of the clearance between the door and its frame and to automatically take up wear on the device itself or on the door and frame.

The invention consists in the combination and arrangement of parts as will be hereinafter more fully described, illustrated in the accompanying drawings, and particularly pointed out in the appended claims, it of course being understood that changes in the form, proportion, size and minor details may be made within the scope of the claims, without departing from the spirit or sacrificing any of the advantages of the invention.

Figure 1 is a fragmentary side elevation of a vehicle body equipped with the device of the present invention, parts of the vehicle being broken away and the device in section.

Figure 2 is a fragmentary sectional view taken on the line 22 of Figure 4.

Figure 3 is an enlarged detailed sectional view taken on the line 3-3 of Figure 1.

Figure 4 is a fragmentary sectional view taken on the line 44 of Figure 2.

Figure 5 is a fragmentary sectional elevation taken on line 55 of Figure 3.

Figure 6 is a plan view of a door support embodying the features of the present invention.

Figure 7 is a detailed perspective view of the base member of the device, the wedge member and other parts being removed.

Figure 8 is a detailed perspective view of the slidable wedge member.

Figure 9 is a sectional view on the line 9-9 of Figure 6.

The device of the present invention is best illustrated in Figures 4 to 9 inclusive to which reference will first be made, and wherein it will 5 be seen that the device includes a base member l9 having opposite outstanding flanges H provided with countersunk openings [2 for the reception of suitable screw threaded fastenings for holding thebase member in place. The retain- 10 ing flanges II constitute a continuation of what will be designated the front face of the base member, and in this front face there is provided a channel l3 having its longitudinal side walls 14 undercut, so that the back of the channel is 15 Wider than the open front thereof'which opens through the front face of the base member. One end of the channel is entirely open, while the opposite end is partially closed by an end Wall l5 which extends from the back wall of the 30 channel and terminates about midway between the back and front of the channel leaving a restricted opening in the adjacent end of the channel.

Mounted to slide longitudinally within the guideway constituted by the channel I3 is a wedge member l6 having beveled or undercut longitudinal side walls I! underlying the undercut longitudinal walls I of the guide channel. The back face of the wedge member is straight and flat was to fit flat against the flat back of the channel. In the back face of the wedge there is provided a recess l8 for the reception of suitable packing material IQ of a character capable of absorbing or taking up a lubricant. In one end of the Wedge there is an opening 20 leading to the recess 18 whereby a lubricant may be supplied to the packing l9 after the device has been mounted in place. While the back face of the wedge is straight and parallel with the back face of the channel 13, the front face 2| of the wedge is inclined longitudinally with respect to its back and is exposed through the open front side of the channel I3 in order that it may have active, cooperative relation with a companion member as will hereinafter be described.

Within the channel 13 there are provided two parallel rods 22 which pass through openings 23 extending entirely through the wedge member it from the front to the rear end thereof. These rods or bars bear at their rear ends against the end wall l5 of the base member, while their opposite ends are received within sockets or seats provided in a cross bar or end plate 24 closing the open end of the channel 13 and secured to the base member by suitable screw threaded fastenings 25. A helical spring 26 encircles each of the rods or bars 22 with one end bearing against the end wall provided by the plate 24. The other aft of the vehicle under the shocks to which the end portion of the spring is received within an enlargement of the bore or opening 23 extending through the wedge member l6. These springs tend to force the wedge member forwardly toward the end wall l5, and of course permit of the movement of the wedge member away from the wall l5. The end wall 15 constitutes a stop in the path of the spring-pressed movement of the wedge I6 to prevent the wedge from being pushed out of the channel by the action of the spring.

For an understanding of the operation of the present device, reference is made to Figures 1, 2, 3 and 4 of the drawings wherein 21 designates the sill of an automobile body, while 28 designates the roof rail'thereof. The lock rail of the body is shown at 29, and 'a portion of an automobile door is shown at 30, it of course being understood that the door is hinged at its right-hand edge to a hinge pillar in the usual manner.

The usual door lock is shown at 3|, while the usual buffers are shown at 32. According to standard practice, there is a clearance space provided all around the peripheral edge of the door and between the latter and the door frame, and consequently it is possible for the door to move in the plane thereof both vertically and fore and automobile body is subjected. The device of the present invention is mounted in the. clearance space, and has been specifically illustrated in the space between the roof rail 28 of the vehicle body and the top rail 33 of the door. The base member I0 is let into the lower side of the roof rail 23 to which it is secured by suitable screw threaded fastenings designated 34 in Figure 4 of the drawings, the device being positioned so that the endwise movement of the wedge member I6 is transverse to the plane of the door and the door frame, the inclined face of the wedge being directed downwardly and exposed through the open side ofthe guide channel l3. Suitably mounted upon the upper edge of the top rail 33 of the door is a wedge member 35 having its upper face inclined in a direction to cooperate with the companion face of the wedge member l6. It will thus be seen that the members 16 and 35 are complementary members having their meeting cooperating faces flat transversely and longitudinally. Looking at Figure 2 of the drawings it will be understood that the right-hand side thereof is the outer side of the vehicle body, and that, in closing, the door 30 swings to the left so that its fixed wedge member 35 engages the slidable wedge member l6 and tends to force the latter to the left against the tension of the springs 26, so that when the door reaches its closed position there will be a wedging action exerting a pressure downwardly against the door in the plane thereof. In view of the clearance at the bottom of the door 30, the bottom rail 36 of the door is provided with a fixed wedge member 31 designed to engage a cooperating fixed wedge member 38 secured upon the top of the body sill 21, so'that the door will be firmly wedged or gripped between the wedge devices at the top and bottom of the door, and thus the door will be held rigidly within its frame and prevented from rattling therein. The purpose of the cooperating wedges 31 and 38 at the bottom of thedoor is to resist the downward pressure upon the door exerted by the wedgingdevice at the top of the door, the latter device being provided with the elastically yieldable wedge member 16 which automatically moves, under the influence of the wedge member 35, to accommodate the device to the width or hand limit by the pressure of the spring 26. During the closing movement of the door an inclined face portion of the striker or contact member 35 engages an inclined face portion of the slide 16 and slides across the latter with a wiping action until the members l6 and 35 are locked together by the mutual wedging action of their inclined faces, whereupon the slidable member 16 will move together with the member 35 against the pressure of the spring 26, which pressure maintains the members I 6 and 35 in contact. The members l6 and 35 may come into complete registration, as indicated in Figure 2 in the firstinstance. Should the clearance between the door and its frame increase by reason of wear or otherwise, the members may not come into contact until after the left-hand end of the member 35 has passed to the left of the left-hand end of the member l6 and the inclined faces have come into locking engagement, whereupon the two members will move to the left simultaneously and as a single unit, their inclined faces being maintained in contact by the pressure of the spring 25, thus insuring wedging pressure between the door and its frame. It will now be understood that the slidable wedge member I6 is also a take up member because it automatically accommodates itself, by reason of the pressure of the spring 26 to any variations in the clearance between the edge of the door and the adjacent edge maintain the members l6 and 35 in mutual con-- tact, thus preventing any looseness of the door within its frame even though the clearance should increase while the door is in its closed position.

By reference to Figure 4 of the drawings, it will be seen that the bearing face of the slidablewedge l6 and the bearing face of the stationary member 35 have been shown in exact longitudinal alignment, This longitudinal alignment is' not essential to the effective operation of the device, as the parts 16 and 35 may be materially out of longitudinal alignment, the essential thing being merely that there is a transverse overlapping of the bearing faces such as will produce the desired wedging action. In order that the wedging action may occur, even though the parts [6 and 35 are not in longitudinally centered alignment, the bearing faces are fiat transversely and longitudinally, whereby a partial transverse overlapping of the bearing faces will be sufiicient to produce an effective operation. Moreover, one of the bearing faces, shown in the drawings as the bearing face on the slidable wedge member, is wider than the bearing face on'the part 35, thereby extending the range of out of alignment operation of the slidable wedge l6 and the fixed member 35. While the device of the present invention has been shown at the top of the door, and fixed wedge members at the bottom of the door, it will of course be understood that this arrangement may be reversed. Moreover, a device of the present invention may be used at the top of the door and another one at the bottom of the door, but it will of course be understood that it is not 10 necessary to use two devices of the present invention as one will be sufficient where the opposite edge of the door is backed up by fixed wedges in the manner indicated in Figure 3 of the drawings. It will furthermore be understood that one or more devices of the present invention may be used at the free or swinging edge of the door, and such an arrangement has been shown in my copending application, Serial No. 624,411, filed July 25, 1932.

As shown in the drawings, suitable spacers may be interposed between the base member l0 and the roof rail 28, and between the contact members 35, 31 and 38 and the corresponding parts to which they are secured to bolster the supports and deaden the sound incidental to concussions occasioned by closing the door.

What is claimed is:

1. A door support comprising a base member having a channel in the front face thereof, one

end of the channel opening through one edge of the base member, the opposite end of the channel .being closed, a wedge member slidable in said channel and having its front outer face flat and exposed through the open side of the channel, a

spring yieldably opposing movement of the wedge inwardly from the open end of the channel, a guide rod for the spring, and a stop on the base to limit the spring pressed movement of the wedge.

N 2. A door support comprising a base member having a channel therein, one end of the channel opening through one edge of the base member, the side walls of the channel being undercut, a wedge member slidably mounted in the channel and having beveled longitudinal edges to fit the undercut edges of the channel, the front outer face of the wedge member being flat and exposed through the open side of the channel, a helical spring opposing inward movement of the wedge member, a guide rod encircled by the spring, and

a stop on the base to limit the spring pressed movement of the wedge.

3. A door support comprising complementary members, each having a back face and a front face, one member having a slide working across the front face thereof, the front face of the slide and the front face of the other member having mutually cooperating bearing portions fiat transversely and longitudinally and meshing in a plane inclined in the general direction of the sliding movement of said slide.

4. A door support comprising complementary members, each having a back face and a front face, one member having a slide working across the front face thereof, the front face of the slide and the front face of the other member 5 having mutually cooperating bearing portions flat longitudinally and transversely and meeting in a plane inclined in the general direction of the sliding movement of said slide, and means yieldably maintaining the slide at one limit 19 thereof.

5. A door support comprising complementary members, each member having a back face and a front face, one member having a slide working across the front face thereof, the front face 15 of the slide and the front face of the other member having mutually cooperating bearing portions flat transversely and longitudinally and meeting in a plane inclined in the general direction of the sliding movement of said slide, one 20 flat bearing portion being wider than the other.

6. A door support comprising complementary members, each member having a back face and a front face, one member having a slide working across the front face thereof, the front face 25 of the slide and the front face of the other member having mutually cooperating bearing portions flat transversely and longitudinally and meeting in a plane inclined in the general direction of the sliding movement of said slide, the width of 30 the fiat bearing portion of the slide being greater than that of said other member.

'7. A device of the character described comprising a base member having a guide channel in the front face thereof, and. a wedge member 35 slidably mounted in said guide channel, the front active face of the wedge member being flat longitudinally and transversely and exposed throughout its area for cooperation with a companion contact member and inclined to 40 the plane of the front face of the base member.

8. A device for interposition between the free edge of a door and the opposed inner edge of a door frame for holding the door against movement within the frame, comprising a member 45 having a front face and a back face adapted to be secured upon the free edge of the door, a complementary member having a front face and a back face adapted to be secured upon the opposed inner edge of the door frame, one of 50 said members having a striker portion projecting at the front thereof and provided with an inclined outer end face flat longitudinally and transversely, and a wedge slidable upon the front face of the other member and having its front 55 face flat longitudinally and transversely and inclined to the plane of the front face of said member and in complementary relation to the flat inclined end of the striker.

RUDOLPH I. SCHONITZER.

CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION:

Patent No. 2,024,886. December 1'7, 1935,.

RUDOLPH I. SCHONITZER.

It is hereby certified that error appears in the printed specification of the above numbered patent requiring correction as follows: Page 5, first column, line 58, claim 3, for "meshing" read meeting; and that the said. Letters Patent should be read with this correction therein that the same may conform to the record of the case in the Patent Office.

Signed and sealed this 21st day of January, .A. D. 1936.

Leslie Frazer (Seal) Acting Commissioner of Patents. 

